Monday, September 9, 2013

Repubican Governors and Legislatures Lead the Way for Poverty in Their States -- Texas is #3

The poverty rate in Texas is 18.5% among the highest in the Country with 19% of Texans aged 25 and older are without a high school diploma.
When I first saw the list of the ten worst states for food security, figured I would find my usual suspects in Red States and was pretty much correct. Didn't figure Oklahoma was part of this as the cost of living here along with unemployment have been some of the lowest in the Country during the downturn and the slow recovery (thanks to the Congressional GOP) we are now experiencing. Out of the ten worst states for food security homes, eight out of ten have Republican Governors. The two states with Democrat Governors have GOP legislatures. In NV, they have a Republican Governor and Democrat legislature. Of the ten states, only Ohio and Nevada voted for President Obama over former Governor Romney.

What happened to this great recovery we hear about from Texas Governor Rick Perry as Texas ranks 3rd in low food security homes at 18.4% but ranks 25th in median income at $49,392 almost $50,000. Looks like Texas Governor Perry and others are only looking out for the wealthy not the average Texan. The poverty rate in Texas is 18.5% among the highest in the Country with 19% of Texans aged 25 and older are without a high school diploma. This is the Great State of Texas we have to hear so much about here in Oklahoma? Excuse me while I laugh at the irony of all of this after being force fed Texas is better then every other state for years.

Who would want to move to Texas today if you are a woman or a minority as Perry and his Administration have declared war on both. If Texas is this bad now on the poverty side, wait until you see how much lower the hard right Republican Attorney General Abbot can send Texas if he becomes Governor. If you think that Perry is bad, just wait until you see Abbott who IMHO could be the final nail for the Republicans in Texas as State Government starts turning blue. Most Texas who still think don't like the hard right who is driving them over a cliff. How long before business' start moving out of Texas because it is too hard right?

My home state of Ohio made the list at #10 thanks to Gov Kasich and the hard right legislature who are out of touch with a lot of the middle class in Ohio who come from blue collar households. This is disgusting because when I grew up, Ohio was in the forefront for innovation and now the state is suffering at the hands of Republicans who don't seem to care as long as they get their donors and money. Republicans have been systematically destroying the state economically for years with their hard right ideas for years. Why would a union shop want to do business in Ohio? It wasn't the best under former Governor Ted Strickland with a GOP legislature but the economy has done a nose dive under Kasich. Time to vote out Kasich and the GOP Legislature along with Republican Governors and members of their state legislatures around the Country.

10. Ohio (Gov Kasich (R), Republican Legislature, Obama)

Low food security homes: 16.1%

Very low food security homes: 7.1% (3rd highest)

Median household income: $45,749 (16th lowest)

Pct. obesity: 29.5% (8th highest)

More than 16% of families in Ohio experienced low food security, meaning they had difficulty accessing food and had poor diet quality. This problem was even worse for some families. Ohio also had the third highest percentage of households in the nation, at 7.1%, that had experienced very low food security at some point. In these homes, at least one person had to reduce food intake or had their eating patterns disrupted by irregular access to food.

9. Tennessee (Gov Haslam (R), Republican Legislature, Romney)

Low food security homes: 16.2%

Very low food security homes: 6.9% (5th highest)

Median household income: $41,693 (6th lowest)

Pct. obesity: 29.6% (7th highest)

More than 16% of Tennessee households faced food insecurity at some point. Like in most states, this number rose considerably from the decade before. In 2002, just 11.3% of households faced food insecurity at some point. Similarly, between 2002 and 2012, the average proportion of households facing very low food security more than doubled, from 3.3% to 6.9%. As of 2011, 17.6% of homes received food stamps or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, more than all but two other states. Also, according to Gallup-Healthways, residents in Tennessee were less likely than Americans in almost any other state to eat healthily.

8. Nevada (Gov Sandoval (R), Democrat Legislature, Obama)

Low food security homes: 16.6%

Very low food security homes: 6.7% (8th highest)

Median household income: $48,927 (24th lowest)

Pct. obesity: 24.9% (15th lowest)

Between 2002 and 2012, the percentage of households in Nevada that faced food insecurity rose from 9.3% to 16.6%. This was the largest such increase in the nation. In those 10 years, the percentage of Nevadans facing very low food security jumped as well, from 3.3% in 2002 to 6.7% in 2012. A lack of access to food was hardly the only major constraint facing Nevada residents, who according to Gallup were less likely to have a doctor or health insurance than residents of nearly all other states as of 2012.

7. Missouri (Governor Nixon (D), Republican Legislature, Romney)

Low food security homes: 16.7%

Very low food security homes: 7.6% (2nd highest)

Median household income: $45,247 (15th lowest)

Pct. obesity: 27.2% (21st highest)

According to a 2012 Gallup-Healthways survey, residents of just two other states were less likely than Missourians to eat healthily. The falling food security of many of the state’s residents may play a role in their poor diets. Nearly 8% of households faced very low food security, the second highest percentage in the nation. This was up significantly from 3.3% in 2002, and the largest increase in the nation over the 10-year period.

6. Georgia (Governor Deal (R), Republican Legislature, Romney)

Low food security homes: 16.9%

Very low food security homes: 6.5% (10th highest)

Median household income: $46,007 (18th lowest)

Pct. obesity: 28.6% (14th highest)

Several factors likely contribute to food insecurity in Georgia. Georgia had one of the nation’s highest poverty rates in 2011, at 19.1% of all residents. Similarly, 6.4% of families earned less than $10,000 annually as of 2011, one of the highest proportions in the nation. According to a 2012 Gallup survey, Georgia residents were among the most likely in the nation to have lacked money for food at some point. They also were more likely than most Americans to not have a doctor or health insurance coverage.

While there are some prosperous regions of the state, North Carolina still has a substantial poverty problem. In 2011, 17.9% of residents were living below the poverty line, the 13th highest rate in the country. More than one in five people surveyed in 2012 by Gallup-Healthways said they had not had enough money to buy food their family needed in the past 12 months. North Carolina’s food security problems have worsened during the recession. In 2009, 14.8% of families had low or very low food security. In 2012, it was 17% of families.

4. Alabama (Governor Bentley (R), Republican Legislature, Romney)

Low food security homes: 17.9%

Very low food security homes: 6.8% (7th highest)

Median household income: $41,415 (5th lowest)

Pct. obesity: 30.4%(5th highest)

Alabama residents practiced less healthy behavior than most Americans as of 2012. Residents were among the most likely to smoke and the least likely to exercise and eat healthy all day. The lack of healthy eating habits may have been driven by low food security, which results in households reducing “the quality, variety, and desirability of their diets,” according to the USDA. The combination of unhealthy behaviors and limited food access likely has led to Alabama residents being among the most overweight and unfit in the country. According to Gallup, just four states had higher obesity rates than Alabama in 2012.

3. Texas (Governor Perry (R), Republican Legislature, Romney)

Low food security homes: 18.4%

Very low food security homes: 6.2% (13th highest)

Median household income: $49,392 (25th highest)

Pct. obesity: 28.9% (12th highest)

In 2002, close to 15% of Texas households faced low food security each year. By 2012, 18.4% of Texas households experienced low food security. For many residents, low incomes likely prevent access to healthy food. As of 2011, Texas had a poverty rate of 18.5%, among the higher rates in the nation. Additionally, many residents in Texas lack the skills to work a high-paying job. Nearly 19% of the state’s population over age 25 had less than a high school diploma, tying Texas with Mississippi for the highest percentage of any state.

2. Arkansas (Governor Beebee (D), Republican Legislature, Romney)

Low food security homes: 19.7%

Very low food security homes: 8.1% (the highest)

Median household income: $38,758 (3rd lowest)

Pct. obesity: 31.4% (3rd highest)

Last year, Arkansas had proportionally more households with very low food security than any other state in the nation, averaging 8.1% of all households. Making it difficult for many residents to afford proper food, Arkansas was one of the nation’s poorest states as of 2011. That year, the median household income was less than $39,000 and one of the lowest in the country. Meanwhile, nearly 20% of the state’s residents lived below the poverty line. With limited, irregular access to nutritious and balanced food, residents were among the most likely to be overweight, based on the results of a 2012 Gallup survey.

1. Mississippi (Governor Bryant (R), Republican Legislature, Romney)

Low food security homes: 20.9%

Very low food security homes: 6.9% (5th highest)

Median household income: $36,919 (the lowest)

Pct. obesity: 32.2% (2nd highest)

One in every five households experienced food insecurity in Mississippi. Residents of the state were among the poorest in the nation in recent years by numerous measures. In 2011, Mississippi had the lowest median household income in the nation, at $36,919, as well as its highest poverty rate, at 22.6% of all residents. Last year, one in four respondents to a Gallup survey stated they had, at some point, lacked the money necessary to feed their family. Even when residents could ensure they did not have to cut back on their meals because of low food security, many likely often had to eat nutritionally poor food. Mississippi residents had among the highest obesity rates in the country.

Texans might want to take a long hard look where they are on the economic ladder along with a lack of high school graduates before casting their votes for any hard right Republicans. Since Governor Perry took over from George W. Bush when he moved to the White House, Texas has been growing, adding more Representatives to the House of Representatives but are now among the leaders of the Country for poverty. Texas lawmakers and Governor don't want to provide healthcare for women or the poor refusing to accept Obamacare and the money to set up exchanges which will make it harder for Texans to afford health insurance. How much money are Republican Governors throwing away refusing to implement Obamacare? Then there are the Attorney Generals of the Red States including Oklahoma who are wasting ur dollars on trying to overturn Obamacare. What part of the SCOTUS ruling in favor of Obamacare do they not understand.

How many of these Republican Governors are going to lose their seat in 2014 due to having voters in their state fed up with them as they ram laws through that hurt their own people? Gov Perry is not running in 2014 as he eyes running for President. Bulletin for Perry -- going to be a long time before this Country ever elects another President from Texas after the last one.

Republican Governors and members of their State Legislature with little to no compassion for the poor and underprivileged are the ones for the most part with the worst poverty. Absolutely stunning at the lack of empathy on the part of Republicans today toward those less fortunate. Looks like they learned their lessons well from Romney and his 1%.